Introducing the Landscape Institute
e Landscape Institute (LI) is a domain of
both action and intellectual inquiry in the
eld of landscape studies. Students who
have taken advantage of its curriculum
have made an indelible impact across New
England as activists, designers, historians
and preser vationists. In , the Institute
stated its' purpose as "to provide a broader
understanding of the complex forces
that shape the environment, and a more
enlightened involvement."
Heather Heimarck, Director of the
Institute, obser ves how well the program
has sustained this mission. "Our students
are prepared to succeed in today's complex
environmental and business climate through
'enlightened involvement' and a collaborative
learning process."
e program has always recognized the
importance of exibility and the complexity
of students' time. e mission of the LI
was, and is, geared toward a wide range of
students, those who wish to develop an
awareness of the landscape or to investigate
landscape design as a career; those who wish
to prepare for graduate school in landscape
architecture; and those who wish to
re ne the skills necessary for work with
conser vation groups, historic commissions,
and planning boards to prepare to make
tangible contributions to communities.
Beginnings
e Landscape Institute began with the
Radcli e Seminars, established in the 's
to foster continuing education and provide
an environment of intellectual stimulation.
Seminars faculty taught a variety of subjects
and were academicians, writers, independent
scholars, practitioners, and artists. All were
experts in their elds, exceptional teachers,
and experienced facilitators of learning. In
, the Radcli e Institute for Independent
Study was established as a multidisciplinary
research center o ering fellowships to
women scholars. Together the two institutions
created an environment where women's
scholarship ourished.
Landscape architect Diane Kostial
McGuire, a graduate of the University
of California, Berkeley, came to the Radcli e
Institute to study landscape architecture
from an intellectual and historical perspective.
She was encouraged to teach a course at
the Radcli e Seminars, which she called
e Intellectual History of Garden Art.
e course, according to Alice Sherman,
a student in the class, was a "dynamic
approach to the living past."
Response to Diane McGuire's course
was so enthusiastic that the Seminars
decided to build a program around it.
In the rst students enrolled, and by
, six of the original students had
completed the seven requirements in history,
design, planting and construction for a
certi cate in landscape design. e program
was overseen by McGuire until , when,
as landscape architect for Harvard and
Radcli e, she undertook the redesign of
the Radcli e Quadrangle. Institute scholar
Beatrice Pettit-Baron, BFA ' MLA ' ,
took over for the next eight years, adding
courses in site engineering, drafting, plant
identi cation, natural systems and design
fundamentals, while certi cate requirements
grew from seven to twelve.
For the next twenty years, under the
direction of John Furlong, MLA ' , FASLA
' , enrollment grew steadily and the
FEATURE ] LANDSCAPE INSTITUTE AT THE BAC
The Landscape Institute of the Arnold Arboretum
Joins the Boston Architectural College
Illustration (above): Bici Pettit -Barron drawing, Puerto Rico
Pamela Hartford, Landscape Historian
and Designer, LI Certificate Candidate
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PRACTICE